


Let Down Thy Hair

by timahina



Series: Predator Week 2019 [2]
Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! ARC-V
Genre: F/M, Fairy Tale Elements, Predatorshipping Week 2019
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-20
Updated: 2019-05-20
Packaged: 2020-03-08 11:34:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,017
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18893806
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/timahina/pseuds/timahina
Summary: There are other ways to escape such a situation.





	Let Down Thy Hair

“Oh, come on!” Serena kicked the door, not in a serious effort to break it down otherwise she would have backed up slightly, but to show her frustration and anger. “Hey!” Another kick. “This! Is! Bullshit!”

Every word was followed by another kick before Serena ultimately gave up. It was easier when she was younger, and the door was made of wood and every guard thought her violent tantrums were almost adorable. But unfortunately, all she needed to do was break off a chunk of it one time before The Professor ordered for her to have a new door and this time it was metal. Her tantrums were never seen as cute again.

Serena huffed; stomping across the room until she fell face first into her bed and screamed into the pillow, kicking the air and punching the mattress.

Her frustrations lasted for a few moments before she simply tired herself out and rolled over, not caring that she fell off the bed. Under the bed was where she kept the pile of books and journal logs and boxes of cards. There was so much space down below that it was easy to hide the contraband. Or materials that The Professor didn’t allow.

At this point, she wasn’t certain if this was an Academia wide rule or just a ‘Serena’ rule. Today, she was given another ‘Serena’ rule and this one was the most annoying one… A rock collided to her window and she huffed - must’ve been the wind or something. Another pebble to the window glass. Once was a coincidence, but twice was purposeful. What the hell…?

Serena stood up from the floor and made her way to the window, opening it up and seeing another Osiris Red student like her standing on the steps with a fistful of pebbles, throwing another one directly at her and it _narrowly_ missed her head. She growled, grabbing one of the pebbles and throwing it back down below and hoped that it hurt and left a giant bruise when it bounced off his head. “Fuck off!” She yelled and slammed the window shut before going back to her bed and sitting atop of it. Some of the other students truly had no head on their shoulders.

She fell back on the bed and stared up at the stone ceiling, ready to put the annoying Osiris Red student out of her mind and focus on another route to escape. Clearly just breaking out through the front door was a pain since the material of the door changed and out the window was difficult since her duel disk had an almost parental-lock quality about it, sending out a signal whenever she activated it. She’d be detected in a heartbeat.

There was the prospect of digging underground. She recalled a story of a man who dug his way out of the prison he was sent to and he was successful. Granted, he took eight years to escape. But she was in a fitter condition than he; surely, she could cut that time in half! But even waiting four years… by then, the dimensional war would be over, and Serena would have never seen the glory of battle and proven herself worthy. She must’ve been the only student at Academia not sanctioned to leave. Either now or another time. She could live with not being sent off now, but she wanted confirmation that she would go.

That she would see beyond the horizon.

_Clink!_

Another goddamn pebble!

“Rapunzel, Rapunzel,” a faint voice yelled out from the outside and she narrowed her eyes, what kind of nonsense… “- let down thy hair!” Serena snorted and had it not been a brand-new pair of shoes she’d requested for a month now; she would’ve tossed one out the window to aim it at his head. And impractical, her hair wasn’t that long. And even if it was, like hell she’d use it as a rope – hair wasn’t sturdy enough and an option she considered once. The thought of being compared to some fairy tale princess… she sneered. “Deny thy father and refuse thy name!”

She blinked. For one thing, that was certainly not how that stupid tale went and now he was quoting something else. And secondly... he sounded much closer. Serena ran up to the window and as she reached it, opening the glass to the cool night air blowing through her hair and there stood the Osiris Red student from before atop his dragon, appearing as some sort of dark knight beneath the moonlight.

“...Yuri?”

“Ah, it is the east... and Serena is the sun.”

“What the hell are you talking about?!”

He shrugged his shoulders. “Oh, some romance crap I’ve overheard Dennis say before. Why, did I say it wrong?”

Serena’s cheeks tinged; that wasn’t the problem! It was too perfectly timed – he had to know what he was saying, playing dumb for cheap effect…! She groaned loudly, looking around cautiously before waving her arm, motioning him to come in as she extended her hand out the window. Yuri jumped off his dragon, taking hold of her strong hand as he gripped the windowsill and helped himself in. “You mixed up lines. One’s from a story of warring families and a child from each falling in love with each other and then tragedy ensues.”

“Heh, sounds boring but the kind of tripe that Dennis would know. What’s the other one from? The other line?”

Serena refused; she didn’t want to give Yuri the satisfaction of calling her Rapunzel for the rest of existence. She merely muttered, feigning ignorance as she watched Yuri wander about her room and his cape flaring out whenever he turned sharply to another part that piqued his interest. In the end, he merely sat down beside her bed, digging underneath and bringing out as many books as he could, staring at each cover before picking up one. That was curious too… She pulled a pillow from the bed and set it down on the floor before sitting on it, making herself comfortable as she looked at the book that he picked up.

“I didn’t know you could take books from the archives.”

“Oh, it’s not from archives. The Professor just gave them to me over the years; he thought I’d like a few of them.” She thought it strange how he always passed one along, saying he had a strong feeling she’d like the premise or the conflict or something absurd. At first, she only picked them up to prove him wrong and that she didn’t enjoy a single thing about it. But no, there was always one that struck a cord within her. She couldn’t understand why.

Yuri nodded, snickering as he opened up one up straight in the middle. “I can’t imagine why – it’s too poetic for you.”

“Eh, it’s not _wholly_ terrible. The imagery’s nice and sometimes, it’s kinda nice to read about fantastical events.” A nice escape every now and then when she didn’t have the energy to muster trying to outrun the guards. And for a few hours, it was nice to be elsewhere.

Yuri nodded, continuing to flip through the pages. “Is there one of a girl trapped in a tower for twenty years and is slowly going insane being surrounded by four walls and her only solace is a vague promise?”

“… it doesn’t go exactly like that.”

Yuri burst out laughing, slamming the book shut and picking up yet another one. Serena was now unsure of what he was looking for but this one seemed more his taste as he started at the beginning instead of straight to the middle. “The best escape is _actual_ escape because it’s ya know, real. It doesn’t matter how eloquently any of these writers can portray defeating an enemy, it doesn’t beat experiencing it. Just like if I were to write down your face when you opened the window and saw me, it wouldn’t do you justice on how funny it was.”

Serena snatched the book right out of his hands, and he pouted; the only form of punishment she could muster for him right now since being quiet was something they were both forced to do. She turned the book over and snickered. “War and Peace, huh? You know this one is about-”

“I know what’s it’s about and you’re not supposed to judge – you’re the one that has a bunch of tripe crammed under your bed.”

“It’s not… wait, you read these other ones?”

“Other times, yea. I only go by the cover but that one,” he pointed to a green book next to Serena’s foot, “that one was dramatic to the point of dragging out the story by another hundred pages. This other one had too much morality debate. And the one I dropped earlier; I think I fell asleep midway through. Which reminds me, could I borrow that for a pillow? It’s surprisingly comfy.”

“You are not using it!” She nearly used the thick book to smack Yuri’s hand but he jumped up on the bed, snatching the book out of her hands and again, opening to the beginning. He somehow grabbed another book, the one he talked about earlier and propped it open to the middle and used it as a pillow as he described. Serena groaned, grabbing another thick bed and joining Yuri up on the bed and laying down next to him. “Books are not pillows.”

“Hard disagree, this is comfy.”

Serena pouted, turning over and pulling the book out from under Yuri’s head. She smoothed out the creases he caused, mumbling angrily by the mess he created and how she had it structured in an organized chaos. And she ignored him as he sat up, he was probably getting ready to leave or bother her some more or even pick apart her tastes. Though if he did, it wasn’t like she could take it personally, none of these were chosen by her.

His foot nudged her and she pushed him back.

Again, nudge.

And again, a push.

Another nudge but this time it wasn’t his foot. No, this has some of dull edge with hardly any weight and she turned around. There was Yuri, holding out a book toward her. It was torn and dusty book to her, missing half its cover. A relic that she was certain if her rough hands took hold of it; the brittle pages would fall apart and turn to dust through her fingers. Carefully, Serena took it out of her hands and flipped through the contents, realizing it was a book of fairytales.

Among all the books, there wasn’t a single one she had of fairy tales. There were constantly referenced in the others, dismissed as children’s tales. Books she couldn’t find within the archives or the library or even books that The Professor brought her. This was the first book she received from the outside and it was that Yuri brought her. And as she opened it up, the story it opened up to was one with a folded corner with a title that made her giggle snort.

“… Rapunzel?”

This time, it was his turn to look away in a slight discomfort. “I… may have skimmed a page or two… there was something about lettuce. Come up, read it to me.” He sat up against the wall and waved his hand; an invitation for her to sit next to him. She grinned and did so, sitting up against the wall with the book right between them.

Yuri leaned his head against her shoulder, curling up by her side and a cool breeze swept into the room. A witch holding a child in a far-away tower, whose only solace was staring out the window until a savior came up to free her from her solitude.

“Hair makes a terrible rope!” Yuri interrupted, mumbling against her.

It wasn’t as if she disagreed with that sentiment but still… she flicked him on the forehead. “No shit, but how else was he supposed to go up there.”

“… he could ride up on a dragon.”

“Shut up.”


End file.
